


Through Shadows and Light

by Antarctic_Echoes, AutumnRayne, BurningUpASunJustToSayHello, CloudXMK, ElenaCee, EllanaSan, flutterflap, Grym, Mia_Vaan, theleafpile



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Cat and Mouse, Chloe Decker is a badass, Doppelganger, F/M, Halloween, Hurt/Comfort, Lucifer will do anything for her, Reveal, Round Robin, The Round Robin From Hell-oween, even if he is an idiot sometimes, multi-authored fic, things that go bump in the night - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-30
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2019-01-26 12:33:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 9,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12557464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antarctic_Echoes/pseuds/Antarctic_Echoes, https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnRayne/pseuds/AutumnRayne, https://archiveofourown.org/users/BurningUpASunJustToSayHello/pseuds/BurningUpASunJustToSayHello, https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloudXMK/pseuds/CloudXMK, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElenaCee/pseuds/ElenaCee, https://archiveofourown.org/users/EllanaSan/pseuds/EllanaSan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/flutterflap/pseuds/flutterflap, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grym/pseuds/Grym, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mia_Vaan/pseuds/Mia_Vaan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/theleafpile/pseuds/theleafpile
Summary: On a dark and stormy night, Chloe Decker relaxes at home.  She finally has a night to herself -- no Maze, no Trixie, and no Lucifer.  But then she hears a creaking floorboard upstairs and realizes she is not alone....





	1. Break by Ellanasan

**Author's Note:**

> Note to the readers: This is a round robin story by several authors. Each author's name is listed in the title of the chapter they worked on, so if you really love a chapter, please leave a note for the author under that chapter! 
> 
> This work has not been betaed so we apologize for any mistakes or errors.

It was a dark and stormy night, the windows rattled with every new boom of thunder and the lights were flickering now and then. Chloe didn’t pay it much attention as she settled on the couch with a glass of red wine, her plate and a throwaway blanket she tossed on her lap.

Maze was out of town, chasing after a criminal or another, Dan had taken Trixie for the week-end, and, as far as she knew, Lucifer was at  _ Lux _ with no imminent emergency or life crisis that would require her to check on him. She was looking at a rare – if not  _ unprecedented  _ – evening of  _ peace  _ and she intended to enjoy it.

She would savor her wine without her roommate stealing it from her, she would eat the whole sandwich without Trixie demanding half of it and she would watch some TV or, if the electricity  _ did  _ give in, grab her ipad and read a book.

Peace and quiet.

Everything she had been desperate for.

Even if her eyes kept darting to the phone she had left on the coffee table in case an emergency came up – at the precinct, with Trixie, with Maze or, more likely, with  _ Lucifer _ . 

Thunder boomed again, so loud she startled and jolted her glass. Some red wine spilled over on her white blanket and she rolled her eyes at her own clumsiness, immediately placing the glass and the plate aside to go take care of the stains.

It looked like blood and it made a chill ran down her spine.

_ Storms are just angels playing rough _ , her old schoolteacher used to say to the terrified class of eight years old. The saying stayed with her. She wasn’t sure why.

Another flash of lightning and its answering loud  _ crack  _ made her heart beat faster.

_ Just angels playing rough _ , she told herself, her mind picturing Lucifer’s face after his fight with Amenadiel. Some angels, those two would be, she snorted, her ridiculous panic fading a little.

At least until she heard the floorboard squeak somewhere in the apartment.

Someone was in here with her…  


	2. Not Alone by theleafpile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter will be listed in the title. Sadly it keeps putting "Antarctic Echoes" under the chapter so please ignore that (unless you see it in the chapter title). Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

It was the rain slapping obscenely against the windows that caught Chloe’s attention next, standing barefoot on the wooden floor, soiled blanket in hand. She remembered, wistfully, a time when such rain would have been a Godsend.

Then again, so was the Flood.

She listened, straining to hear against the low, guttural settling of the apartment’s walls. How, only a few moments ago, the silence seemed peaceful, the alone time necessary, the darkness quiet.

Now the darkness in the corners grew.

Chloe shook her head, mentally chastising herself for harboring a fear even Trixie had gotten over, and forced her way toward the kitchen. Her mother had splashed wine enough on her own clothing as Chloe grew that it was unfathomable she herself didn’t know how to keep the stain from settling: a little salt rubbed against it, held tight over a pot of boiling water, before throwing it immediately in the wash. Simple.

Like salt in a wound.

_Very deliberately_ , Chloe banged the pot against its neighbors as she pulled it from the cupboard. _Very deliberately,_ she pushed the faucet to full-blast, filling the pot in seconds, the sounds reverberating through the ( _very empty_ ) apartment. She set the water to boil, dumped salt on the stain, and _very deliberately_ , started to quietly make her way toward the stairs.

A creak. That’s all it was. A creak in a settling apartment in the middle of a rainstorm from Hell.

It could be nothing else.

With her back against the wall, Chloe slunk higher step-by-step, casting a wary eye toward the dark corner of her closed bedroom door. A swift check of the bathroom revealed nothing but familiar, placid shapes.

She paused, her breathing shallow, listening.

A sharp clap of thunder could not conceal the closer slap of plastic window blinds against wooden trim.

Two thoughts clashed with one another as they vied for precedence in her mind:   _My carpet is probably soaked by now,_ and _Fuck._

Because she didn’t leave the window open. Not ever.

Another creak, more familiar now that she was closer, her hand just hovering over the door handle – her bed.

It creaked again. Something, something of human body weight, was on top of her bed.

Was it bad that her first thought had to be _Lucifer?_

She cleared _that_ particular stream of consciousness from her mind and faltered. She had no weapon, nothing in her hand to shoo out whatever person or, more horrifyingly, whatever large animal may happen to be taking residence between her _just laundered_ sheets, so she pulled her hand away and stepped backward toward the bathroom, searching her mind for a weapon. There had to be something nearby.

Perhaps the plunger would do. It would certainly scare her away, someone coming at her with it.

In some corner of her mind, she registered that the water had begun to boil, the full pot jangling dangerously against the heated swirl of metal on the stove.

Plunger in hand, Chloe returned to the door.


	3. Trouble by Antarctic Echoes

 

 

Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm the fierce pounding of her heart.  Wholly attuned to every creak coming from behind the doorway, all other sounds faded from her ears.  As she swallowed hard, she tightened her grip on her weapon.  She was a cop, dammit!  Nothing -- not even a burglar or a wild animal -- was going to scare her from her own home!  Quickly wiping her palm against her jean-clad leg, she reached for the doorknob.

“I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.”

Biting back a scream, Chloe whirled to see Lucifer standing behind her, dressed impeccably in his bespoke suit and remarkably dry despite the storm.  Not even a drop of water clung to his perfectly styled hair. 

Lowering the plunger, she cast a look at the bedroom door before striding up to him.  God, she  _ hated _ it when he appeared out of nowhere!  “What the  _ hell _ are you doing here?”

He cocked his head and said matter-of-factly, “Why, saving my partner from a fate worse than death.”

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to determine if he was joking.  “A fate worse than...?”

“Death. That’s right, Detective.”  Thrusting out his chest, he smiled.  “Riding a pale horse, the Devil has come to rescue you!”  He winked at her.  “You may reward me with sex later.”

She lifted an eyebrow at him.  “Doesn’t Death ride a pale horse?”

“Yes, well....”  His face growing pink, he cleared his throat and took a deep breath.  “Right.  Think whatever you like, but I  _ am _ here to help.  And believe me, no little wooden stick with a rubber attachment will scare away what’s behind that door.”  He eased the plunger from her grasp, then held it away from him with a grimace.  “Even if it  _ has _ been in contact with human excrement.”

Heat rose in Chloe’s cheeks as she grabbed the plunger back.  “It’s all I have --”

He yanked it away from her.  “What you need is a real weapon, not this... this travesty you regard as a club.  Although I must say, most people would run from such a foul-smelling weapon --”

“Be serious, will you?”  Gritting her teeth, she snatched it back.  

All humor dropped from Lucifer’s face as he seized the makeshift weapon and threw it behind him.  The plunger clattered down the stairs, its sound combining with the jangling of the pot on the stove to resemble a track from a horror movie score.   “I am quite serious.  What lies in wait isn’t something to be trifled with.”

Normally she would have scoffed at his statement, but something in his eyes sent chills skittering up and down her spine.  Suppressing a shudder, she folded her arms in front of her and lifted her chin.  “So what would  _ you _ use?”

As he opened his mouth to reply, Chloe heard another creak and held up her hand for silence.  The bed... then a floorboard.  The intruder was on the move.


	4. Revelations by CloudXMK

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

Putting a finger to his lips, Lucifer quickly takes her hand and pulls her away from the door. “Come on. Whatever you do don’t stop, don’t talk and don’t EVER try to engage it. Not now.” He told her.

It felt straight out of a horror video game. Reminded Chloe painfully of one her daughter had been begging to get but one look at its preview and she was like, “Nope. Not having it.” Amnesia, yeah, that’s what it was called.

“What’s going on, Lucifer?” Chloe questioned him as they hurried down the hallway and into Trixie’s room.

“I told you. A fate worse than death.” She didn’t know what could be worse than death. I mean what could beat dying?

“Its something that is eons older than my Father and I’m trying to stave it away from you. You are a pure soul, Detective.” He said, quickly pushing her into the room and locked the door behind.

“It craves for a soul of light. Which also includes me since I was the Lightbringer once upon a time.”

“But… why? Let’s just say whatever this thing is, its in my home this instant. Why does it need souls of light?”

“Because it needs it for consumption. It needs to consume until no soul of light exists but yet it needs these souls. Without them, it dies.” Lucifer explains as he pushes her into the closet. The serious glint in his eyes and the frown on his face was so unlike the Lucifer she knew and for a moment, she thought she would believe him.

But she stopped herself. There was no way such a thing even exists.

“So this weapon I need to get rid of it…”

“Is to deprive it of all the souls its consumed.” He said.

“How?”

“Explosion perhaps? Something it consumes that is too powerful for it to digest and it goes kaboom.”

“We are not having dynamites in my house, Lucifer.” Chloe said exasperatedly. 

“Who said about using dynamites?” 

A scuttle was heard from outside and Lucifer pushed her in, shutting the closet doors in her face. “Whatever you do, do not come out.” He tells her.

Silence fills the air, her breathing slowing and she could hear Lucifer’s breaths soft and shallow and quietly stepping away from the door. Everything was just deathly silent.

Just as Chloe was about to walk out annoyed and ready to stop whatever game Lucifer was doing, a loud boom followed by a crash rang throughout the room.

A pained cry filled the air. Lucifer’s cry.

“Lucifer!” Chloe screamed and she ran out only to stop dead at what she saw. 


	5. Chill by AutumnRayne

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

She squinted, lifted a hand to shield her eyes from the bright white light just outside the doorway.  Slowly, her hand fell back to her side as the light moved down the hallway, leaving a much softer, dimmer light in its wake.  It was gloomy, tinged with the palest shade of blue, maybe green.

“Lucifer?” she whispered.  Willing her body to move, Chloe quickly made her way across the bedroom to the door.  Her fingers curled tightly around the wooden frame as she carefully peeked around the jamb.  The source of the strange light had already rounded the corner to the stairs at the far end of the hallway.  Only its outer edge of luminescence remained on the landing.  Grey and black shadows of the picture frames on the wall flickered against the stale cream-colored walls, disappearing into the darkness of the upper level as the light dissipated.

Chloe took several tentative steps around the doorway and into the hall as she tried to collect herself, tried to settle her rattled nerves.  She stretched her left arm until her fingertips connected with the wall and let the structure guide her through the oddly eerie space.  A peculiar chill circled her ankles as she stopped at the top of the staircase.  Though the mysterious light was no longer in sight, the table lamp from the living room provided enough light to illuminate the thick, white fog slowly pouring from seemingly nowhere over the steps.

Fog.

Just like a scary movie.

Chloe tightly gripped the railing and descended the stairs, the fog swirling around her legs with quick yet fluid motions as she moved.  The fear that had clawed its way into the pit of her stomach suddenly gave way to a wave of anger.  She had been on enough movie sets to know a cheap machine would produce a decent fog effect.  Though she didn’t smell the tell-tale scent of a chilled, stale acridness, she knew Lucifer liked his toys expensive and no doubt the more expensive the fog machine, the more realistic and less smelly the fog.

“Lucifer!” she yelled as she neared the bottom of the stairs.  “I swear as soon as I find you, I’m going to wrap my fingers around your throat and…”  She slowed her movements as she spotted her partner, standing at her stove in the darkened kitchen with his back to her.

“Detective,” he scolded lightly.  “One should never leave a pot of boiling water unattended.”  He turned slowly to face her.  “A few moments more and the water would have completely evaporated.  The pot would have melted.  It would have started a fire.”

“You’re right,” she nodded.  “Thank you.  For catching that.  Now get out.”

“I’m sorry?”

“Get out of my house, Lucifer.”  Chloe released a quiet bit of a laugh.  “This…whatever you’re doing,” she started, swiping her hands through the air, “is not cool, Lucifer.”  He slowly stepped out of the shadows, moving towards her, and just like that, the fear returned.


	6. Monsters by BurningUpASunJustToSayHello

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

Lucifer’s footsteps were silent as he took another step forward, hand outstretched and crooked smile slicing across his face.

“Detective, come now, what’s a little monster hunt between friends?”

His smile stretched wider and Chloe was certain his skin was cracking at the corners of it.

_ “Lucifer,” _ she let an inch of fear bleed into her tone, “seriously.” 

His smile didn’t falter and he took another step towards her.

Chloe took a step back with a little nervous chuckle, the panic in her stomach threatening to boil over just as her pot had.

“If this is you trying to test out some stupid Halloween thing for Lux, Lucifer so help me  _ God,  _ I will murder you and have Ella hide the body.”

She gulped when Lucifer didn’t even flinch at the mention of the G-word. She’d prayed saying it would snap him out of whatever Luciferness he was in, but that was just the problem: it wasn’t Luciferness. Whatever it was, it wasn’t typical Lucifer behavior. Sure he’d been cryptic before, but it had never scared her before either.  Lucifer, who stole Trixie’s sandwiches and played Sex Words With Friends, was not  _ this. _

Chloe frantically searched his face for any hint that she was wrong, but all she was met with was cold, shark-like eyes where his soft brown ones should have been. 

Her eyes darted from his face to his hand, still caressing the tension between them, and what she saw made her take another step back. 

The black onyx ring she’d seen so many times coiled around his finger was missing. There was no tell tale tan line to reassure her that he was just getting it cleaned and no fidgeting  with the empty space it used to occupy.  

“Lucifer,” she said, trying to keep her voice light and conversational, “where is your ring?” 

Lucifer blinked and Chloe saw his smile slip as a  hint of annoyance flashed in his eyes. But just as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared with a careless,  _ too  _ careless she noticed, sweep of his hand.

“Ring?” he asked with a ghost of his usual condescending laugh.

“The signet ring on your right hand--the onyx one, where is it Lucifer?” 

Another blink.

His form wavered like a glitch in Trixie's video games and Chloe could have sworn the shadows that painted the kitchen began to crawl.

“You mean the one right here?” He spread his fingers out like a proud fiance, displaying the ring perfectly nestled on his ring finger, as if it had never been gone in the first place. 

A chill ran up her spine. “No,” she shook her head, “it was gone, I remember it missing.” 

Chloe felt her back hit the cabinets. 

_ Cornered _ , the detective of her brain screamed,  _ what now?  _

“Dear,” Lucifer chastised her lightly, “are you alright?”

_ Dear?  _ He’d called her maybe darling or love, but never dear. It had never been dear. 

She forced her face to stay neutral as she slowly drew a hand behind her back, searching for what she knew was pressed against the kitchen backsplash. Lucifer watched her with expectant eyes, body perfectly still, and shadows writhing beneath his feet.  Finally, her hand latched onto the wood base of the knife block. Slowly, she wrapped her hand around the handle of one and slid it out of its wooden slot.

“I’m fine,” she lied, keeping the knife firmly behind her back and out of his line of sight.

Lucifer seemed satisfied with the answer and closed the distance in between them, making Chloe grip the knife tighter. But just as his hand came up to cup her trembling cheek, there was a whisper of metal singing through the air. 

Chloe flinched as Lucifer coughed a mouthful of black blood all over her sweater in dark, oozing stains. The knife flashed in the dim light as she brought her hands up in front of her face in self defense. Lucifer slumped in pain, gripping the countertop in a white-knuckled grip. 

Frozen in fear that should have been trained out of her,  Chloe could only watch in horror as he peered up at her with a smile full of clenched teeth. Blood mixed with saliva dripped from his mouth and a gurgling chuckle tore from his stained lips. A cough racked his form once more, spraying blood onto the kitchen tile. 

Chloe sneaked a glance down at his feet and it was then she noticed the tip of a blade in his blood-soaked abdomen and a figure looming over his shoulder.

“That’s not me, Detective,” a familiar voice rang out. 


	7. Light and Shadow by theleafpile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

Chloe dragged her eyes upward and met only darkness, the sputtering and coughing not-Lucifer at her side still gripping the edge of the counter in a painful, white-knuckled grip as he collapsed onto his knees.

She was torn. Torn between helping someone – some _ thing _ – that looked, at least physically, like the partner she had come to trust, and a voice, which in four words confirmed for her that what she was seeing was not only real, but very much happening.

In her state of frozen disbelief, not-Lucifer whirled upright, splattering blood across her face as he swung his eyes to meet hers, gripping the tops of her arms horrifically tight and opening its mouth – no, unhinging its jaw – and she could no longer see –

With a booming, like thunder, and a flash of light, the creature was gone just as quickly as it appeared. Lucifer’s real hands overlaid gently where its fingers had bruised, shaking her lightly, a call of “Detective” on his lips.

Though right in front of her, his voice seemed much further away than it did a moment ago.

The rain continued its downpour, shaking the windows, and Chloe jolted at the sound of thunder. Lucifer was speaking to her, but she could not make out the words, as though they evaporated in the air between them.

“Chloe?” he finally asked, and the desperation in his voice pulled her back to him. “I told you not to interact with it,” he chided, dropping his hands and turning away, taking a few long steps to look into the shadowy corners. “Look what it does. Takes and takes.”

“What does?” she asked, finding her voice much smaller than she would’ve liked.  _ C’mon, Chloe _ , she encouraged herself,  _ you’re a homicide detective. You’ve been through worse. _

_ But never in your own home _ , the voice in her head reminded her, and she shook it away.

“Doesn’t really have a name,” Lucifer provided, turning back toward her. As though drawn, she found herself pulled to his side, checking the room. “Like I said. It was here before anything else. And I do mean anything. Father’s little light show dispersed it, pushed it into the corners, burned it away – I was never quite certain what, exactly, happened because listening to one’s parents talking about hooking up is enough to make anyone’s ears bleed.”

“How did you…?” she brought her hands up, as though to mock an explosion, then dropped them back to her sides, feeling far too childish to suggest Lucifer may have actually _created a ball of light right in front of her face_ _to frighten away a monster from before the Universe existed._

Lucifer did not answer, listening.

“Lucifer? What was that light?”

She watched the wheels of his mind whirl to a stop, a grin plastering itself on his face as he looked down at her, then grimacing slightly. She touched her cheek. Wet. With blood.

Gross.

“Oh, Detective!” Lucifer cried out, excitedly grabbing her hand. “You’re a genius!”


	8. Higher Form of War by Grym

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

“What?” Chloe let herself be dragged through the blood-spattered kitchen and towards the front door, still hazy, struggling to get her mind to focus on facts. Crazy, impossible facts. “Lucifer. Lucifer, wait!” Digging in her heels in spite of the shivering numbness in her limbs, she hauled him to a stop. “Wait.”

He gave her a quick, exasperated glance. “Detective,” he said in a tone most people reserved for very young children or the mentally unstable. “I’d think by now you’d realize that we probably shouldn’t be here.”

Chloe shook her head and pulled her fingers from his. “No. You need to explain this. What just happened? What was that—thing?” Finally, as if long-rusted gears had begun to turn, she replayed the last several minutes. “What just happened? And what happened to you upstairs? You cried out, there was light and then fog and you were gone . . .” She took a steadying breath as her very memories seemed to slide like oil on water, shying away from that horror in the kitchen. She stared down at herself, willing reality back in the small details—the gouts of cold, dark muck that flecked her sweater and face, the knife still dangling in her other hand, the crawling shadows at the periphery of her vision. 

Lightning flashed again beyond the windows, sluicing the apartment in cold, stuttering light. Thunder rolled over the roof a split second later, shaking the walls, a visceral rumble that Chloe felt in her already unsteady gut. As it faded, the sound of torrential rain took its place.

Lucifer flailed his hands in evident frustration. “Really, Detective, haven’t we done this? Fate worse than death? Not to be trifled with? Consumer of pure souls and all that jazz? Not for you to engage? Ever. You  _ were _ here for all that, weren’t you?”

“I’ve been here all the time. Unlike you,” she replied, her eyes tracking his right hand. The onyx ring glinted on his middle finger, just where it should be. She shivered anyway. “Lucifer, what happened upstairs? That light . . . And again, just now. It was so bright.” 

Lucifer sighed. He stared past her hard for a moment, then peered around them into pools of shadow that she didn’t remember being there before. “Fine,” he grumbled, frowning down at her. “We probably have a few minutes. Look, I’ve told you most of what you need to know. There were—” He searched for words. “Things. Essences, if you will, that pre-existed Creation. Yes, yes, Detective. I know you don’t believe I’m the Devil. Just play along, will you? Now is most assuredly not the time for more.”

She nodded. “Right. Go on. This monster or whatever is something that was pushed out when the universe began. Got it.” Chloe grasped a little desperately at the familiarity of running down facts in a case, of questions and probabilities. “That doesn’t tell me what just happened.”

Another boom of thunder rattled the building. Another flash of  light seared across the windows, the crackle of static audible this time. 

Lucifer pointed upward. “The fires of Creation, Detective. That’s what happened. The light and power that brought universes into existence drove the original inhabitants of the realm from the scene, left them to lurk in outer darkness, beyond the edges of reality, waiting to return. My Father ordered sentinels set against them.” He snorted. “It was one of the last things I think we did together, if you can believe it.”

_ Belief isn’t the goal right now,  _ Chloe admitted to herself, gesturing for him to continue. “So, something drove them away. Kept them away. Sounds useful. What?”

Thunder struck the house as if with a physical force, simultaneous with the crack and flare of lightning. “The vestigial light of Creation, of course. The lightning storms that rage across this world. The gaseous clash of ions on millions of others. The bursts of starfire that burn all across the cosmos. All these serve to bar the way of original entropy from returning in force.”

“Sooooo,” Chloe tested it out.  “Storms. Storms like this one?”

He wasn’t looking at her again, his gaze ranging around the increasingly murky room. “In simple terms, yes.”

“Then why the hell is it--that  _ thing _ , that monster . . . How could it be here, now? In a storm?”

“It’s been a long, dry season, Detective?” Lucifer shrugged, looking uncomfortable and wary. “How should I know? It slipped through and needed a place to get out of the light, to feed itself up?”

“So, where is it now, then?” Chloe reached for his arm before looking over her own shoulder into the too-dark kitchen, making sure he would still be there when she turned around. When her fingers closed over his sleeve, she felt him flinch, heard his faint hiss of breath.

“Oh, it’s still here,” he muttered, going still under her hand. “Gathering itself.” 

Chloe peered at him more closely now. She had no doubt this was her actual partner, slightly ruffled in his bespoke suit, his brow furrowed in concentration or, perhaps, pain. “Lucifer, what happened to you upstairs? Just now? That light. What did you do?”

“We really must move, Detective.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” she insisted, tightening her fingers.

He licked his lips, a nervous gesture that looked odd on his usually confident face. “I have a brilliant idea to end this thing once and for all. Well, you had a brilliant idea, actually. But you don’t know it. Accidental genius.” He gave her a smile that didn’t warm his eyes.

“Keep talking.”

“It’s really quite simple, Detective. I’m Lucifer Morningstar. I’m the Lightbringer, the angel who set the sentinels themselves. If this thing is here, if it’s hunting you or me, then it’s here to bolster itself with the very thing that can repel it. At least, applied in mass.”

Chloe watched him, a little unnerved by his behavior, his reticence. “You’re making even less sense than usual.”

“Remnants of pure Creation, Detective! Pure souls, like you. The quintessence of the First-Created, like me.”

“So, we’re like—what? A vaccine against whatever forces it away? It eats us and builds resistance to these sentinels?”

The analogy drew a short huff of laughter from him even as his eyes continued to scour the dark corners of the room. “If you will. Well, at least, that’s likely in your case.”

“But you drove it off before. You stuffed me into a closet and did  _ something _ . And both you and it changed. You vanished. It—it became—”

She could see the muscles in his jaw clench and release. “I came back again, Detective. That’s the important part, surely.” 

“So did it.”

He was staring at the corner of the living room now, eyes narrowing. “And I think that’s enough answers.  We really need to go now.”

She followed his gaze as the entire apartment was painted again in vivid white light and the tremble of thunder. There was something that shouldn’t be there, a shapeless mass beside the sofa that seemed to grow as she stared. “Right,” she agreed. “Out?”

They leapt for the front door together just as something shrieked behind them, charging with an audible rush of wind. Tumbling outside and into the torrential downpour, they slammed the door.  Lucifer flung his back against it with a quiet gasp, just as something struck the wooden panels hard, rattling them in the frame. 

“Run, Detective!” Lucifer snarled at her, bracing himself. “Keep running. Find Maze. Find my brother.”

“I’m not leaving you to face that thing by yourself!” she snapped back.. 

“I can do this. You can’t. I told you—”

“Do what?” She nearly screamed at him in frustration. “You couldn’t stop it by yourself before!”

A bolt of lightning splintered overhead. The smell of burning ozone filled the air, and Chloe thought she saw blue-white sparks dance along the wet concrete.  A second strike sizzled past her,  its nearness heating the air and causing every hair on her body to bristle. 

“I didn’t try hard enough before,” Lucifer said through clenched teeth. “I didn’t want to— I thought—.” He threw his head back against the shuddering door, rain pouring over his features, slaking his hair to his head.  “Damn it, Chloe. Just go!”

Chloe stared at him for a breathless moment, his angular face lit by lightning that seemed to gravitate toward them. One of the neighbor’s flower pots exploded into steam and ceramic shards. A tongue of blue fire whipped through the air to vanish at Lucifer’s feet. 

“What the hell are you doing?” she demanded, reaching for him in spite of her mounting terror.

“What I was made to do, Detective.”  He looked directly at her, suddenly solemn, and she could have sworn the white blaze of lightning burned in his eyes, an otherworldly reflection of the violent skies beyond. “Leave now.” His words rumbled like thunder, a command that had her turning away before she realized she had moved.

Behind them both, the door split wide open.


	9. Running in the Dark by EllanaSan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

She barely made it to the pavement before a huge blast of air brought her tumbling to the ground. The  _ CRACK _ that went with it chilled her to the bones. It was like thunder booming right in her ear, it was like flying in the middle of a thunderstorm, it was like…

She coughed, a bit dizzy, and realized she had knocked her head when she had fallen down. Drops of rain poured down on her face and she made an effort to roll on her side and to her feet. She crouched there for the longest time, studying her surroundings, her heart beating madly in her chest with the desperation of every prey knowing they were about to get caught.

_ Where were the lights? _

Everything was dark. The street lamps were dead, the neighbors’ windows were all opaque, there was no moon overhead and she could barely make out the shape of Lucifer’s corvette tossed more than parked a few feet away.

The darkness was rippling.

It loomed around her as if it wanted to swallow  _ everything _ .

As if it was  _ alive _ .  

“Lucifer!” she shouted at the top of her lungs.

It was covered by the deafening noise of the storm. A whisper against a roar. Slowly, she limped her way to the corvette, hugging herself to keep warm.

_ Right,  _ she thought.  _ Essences. Pre-Creation. _

_ Remnants of Creation _ .

She somehow doubted they had  _ that  _ at the local drugstore. They needed help. She didn’t know where Maze was exactly but she was certain her friend was too far. It left Amenadiel even though she didn’t have the slightest clue where to start looking for him.  _ Lux _ seemed like a good idea.  _ Lux  _ had always been a shelter of sort. And  _ Lux _ meant light, didn’t it? She wasn’t sure if it was more than a name but everything was completely mad and she needed a place to regroup. The more she thought about it, the more  _ Lux _ sounded like a good plan.

Lucifer…

Lucifer would be alright, wouldn’t he? He always was. Earlier he had disappeared for a few minutes and then… Then he had come back. She had to trust it would be the case again.

She leaned against the car door, not sure her partner would be pleased with the amount of water that had pooled inside his car. She felt around the contactor…

“Looking for this?” a familiar slick voice asked and she whirled around to see Lucifer standing behind her, impeccable in his dark suit, not a hair out of place – and his car keys dangling from his fingers.

“You’re not him.” she said at once because it was  _ so obvious  _ now. She tried to scramble back, unable to repress that primitive fear coiling in her belly, but her path was blocked by the car.

_ The thing _ blinked and it tilted its head to the side, a wide and frightening grin slowly stretching its lips. “Why, little girl… The devil left the building. It’s only you and me now.”

“ _ Little girl, _ really?” she snorted despite her fear. “You couldn’t find something a little more original?”

Sarcasm seemed to fly high over its head. It took a few steps forward and she forced herself to hold still, to stay calm, to  _ assess. _ “What do you want?”

The thing paused and blinked again, as if thinking that over. Then, it gave her one of Lucifer’s casual shrug. “I’m  _ famished _ , Detective. You wouldn’t let me starve, would you?”

He started advancing on her again and Chloe swallowed hard, glancing in the direction of the apartment building’s door. “Where’s Lucifer? What did you do to him?”

“He burned himself out.” the thing that wore his face dismissed. “The Lightbringer isn’t so bright anymore. He thinks he can chase me away but the time he created those detestable stars was long ago. He is nothing more than a spark in the dark now. Easily put out. The more he tries his little tricks, the stronger I get. Appetizers, if you will.”

The creature reached out for her face again but, this time Chloe was ready. She kicked him in the stomach, slammed her elbow at the back of his neck once he doubled over and snatched the car keys from where they had fallen on the pavement before jumping inside the corvette. The seats were wet and there was water everywhere but the car  _ blissfully  _ started and she whirled out of there so fast she almost  _ flew _ .

The roads were slippery and she was so soaked she kept losing her grip on the wheel. The streets were strangely deserted, people having probably sought shelter from the storm inside and for that she was grateful. She was driving too fast and she wasn’t used to the sport car, she ran over three trash bins and had a near miss collision with a post.

No matter how fast she drove though, she knew the darkness was giving chase.

Street lamps flickered off in the wake of the car, windows grew dark, Los Angeles was being taken over…

She almost laughed at that thought.

She had gone crazy, she decided as she finally braked right in front of  _ Lux _ , the corvette skidding until it finally stopped. She didn’t let herself think, she jumped out and ran inside.

The club was deserted like it never was at night. No bartenders, no Britannies, no customers or dancers… But the lights were on and she breathed a sigh of relief as she hurried down the stairs and to the center of the room. She hadn’t realized how much she  _ loved  _ lights before this.

“Lucifer?” she called out with chattering teeth. “Amenadiel?” And when only silence answered her, she rubbed her face. “Someone?”

She was shivering badly and she took a step in the direction of the elevator, thinking that she could check the penthouse and borrow some clothes while she was at it –  _ and  _ a weapon, she was  _ certain  _ Lucifer had all sorts of weapons up there and she wanted to be armed the next time she would see that  _ thing _ . Before she could move much further though, the lights went out.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, someone’s breath tickled her ear.

“ _ Hello _ , Detective. Did you miss me?”


	10. Trapped by Antarctic Echoes

 

 

Oh,  _ crap. _

With a gasp, Chloe whirled around to face the thing that looked like her partner as loud cracks of thunder punctuated the atmosphere outside.  Almost continual flashes of lightning poured through what few windows LUX had, dimly illuminating the interior of the nightclub, as well as the creature before her.  He -- no,  _ it _ \-- smiled as it took a step toward her, its grin a caricature of Lucifer’s warm smile.  For an instant it almost looked like its neck was broken as it twisted its head at an unnatural angle before straightening.  Its predatory eyes, so cold and dead, gleamed like obsidian.  

Sneaking quick glances behind her to make sure she wouldn’t trip over a chair or table, Chloe slowly backed away.  One misstep and she’d be dead.  She racked her brain for a weapon she could use against the nightmarish monster.

“Where are you going?” the Lucifer doppelgänger asked as he matched her step for step, stalking her like a lion preying on a helpless zebra.  “You have nothing to fear, Detective.  I’m not going to harm you... much.”

_ Time.  _  Time was what she desperately needed -- a scarce commodity as long as that thing had her in its sights.

“But I must admit that I do enjoy playing with my food.”  Its low chuckle sent chills down her spine.  “It’s been so long since I’ve been on a good hunt.”  The sight of the creature’s grin, so full of malice and hunger, set Chloe’s heart pounding.  Wiping her clammy hands down her jeans as she took another step back, she nearly jumped out of her skin when the back of her legs bumped against a high stool.  

“Lucifer will come.”  She lifted her chin defiantly as she slowly reached back with one hand and firmly gripped one of the stool’s legs.

“The Lightbringer?” The creature snickered.  “Your faith is so incredibly misplaced.”

Chloe clenched her teeth as she tried to quell her churning stomach.  All she needed was that damned thing to take its eyes off of her for one second -- just one second.  “He came back before, he’ll do it again.  You can bet on it.”

This time the doppelgänger threw back its head and laughed boisterously -- which was just what she had been waiting for.  Swinging the stool with all her might, she heaved it at the creature before sprinting away.  She heard it roar with anger, but didn’t look back.  Staying low, she zigzagged between various pieces of furniture and kept on the move.

“You can’t hide from me -- I know exactly where you are!”

_ Maybe.  But you don’t know where I’m going. _

Running hard, she dashed across the room and threw herself behind the bar.  Another flash of lightning lit up the rows of whiskey bottles neatly lined up under the counter.

Frantically running her hands along the shelves, Chloe searched for the lighter that she knew was there.  She distinctly remembered the LUX bartender producing one from behind the bar as he’d made her a Backdraft -- a drink that completely engulfed its shot glass in flames.  Lucifer had ordered it for her after their most recent case had closed, saying, “Together, we’re a bit like hellfire and holy water, Detective.  I thought this particular drink would be fitting.”

God, she missed him!

“Hiding behind the bar, Detective?  Taking a last drink before meeting your fate?”  Lucifer’s voice -- so cold and wrong -- rang out, startling her.  That thing was getting closer.  

As she knocked over various utensils and tools, Chloe suddenly felt the hair rise on the back of her neck.  She could sense the darkness closing in around her, blanketing her, squeezing the very breath out of her.  Biting her lower lip, she kept up her search, until at last her shaking fingers wrapped around the hard case of the lighter hiding behind the cocktail shaker.  

“Oh, Detective!”  

Shivers shot through her at its sing-song voice, now so near.  With trembling hands, she quickly grabbed one of the bottles of Scotch and opened it, then tore off the edge of her shirt and stuffed a part of the material inside.   She cursed as she struggled to get the lighter to light.

“Come on, damn you!” she growled as she flicked the striker wheel over and over.

At last the wick caught fire, the tiny, flickering flame creating a little bubble of warm light around her hand.  With no time to spare, Chloe lit the Molotov cocktail and threw it at the creature.  Flames exploded at its feet, licking at its dark form.

“You bloody  _ bitch!” _  Screaming in rage, the doppelgänger sprinted toward the bar and lunged at her.


	11. Shadows and Starlight by flutterflap

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

Chloe flung herself to the side, grabbed another bottle from behind the bar, and smashed it over the creature’s head. It screamed in rage again. The flames from her molotov cocktail licked up its pant legs. She fumbled with the lighter, touched the flame to the puddle of liquor pooled at its feet, and ran. 

The orange glow lit her way as she dashed for the club entrance, overturning furniture as she went—anything to put another obstacle between herself and the thing that wore Lucifer’s form. She raced headlong through the door and ran straight into a tall, familiar form.

His hands came up to grasp her shoulders and Chloe leapt back, raising the broken whiskey bottle she still held by the neck and dropping into a defensive crouch. “Don’t touch me!”

Lucifer raised his hands. The rain still sheeted down. She couldn’t make out his features, just the shape of him, shimmering and dripping in the streetlights. He took a slow step forward. “It’s me, Detective.” 

Chloe backed away, held the broken bottle up higher. “Don’t come any closer.”

He stopped. “Detective— _ Chloe _ . Please. It’s me, I swear it.”

She wanted to believe him, wanted to believe the pleading note in his voice, the way he said her name, but she’d already been fooled once tonight. She shook her head. “Prove it.”

He let his hands drop to his side with an exasperated huff that that creature inside probably couldn’t imagine, let alone produce. He glanced at the entrance to Lux behind her. “We don’t have  _ time _ .” He started toward her again, into the pool of light cast by a nearby streetlamp, and Chloe’s breath caught.

He was soaked, his hair plastered to his head and water pouring in rivulets down his cheeks. His clothes hung on him in singed, dripping shreds. Through the torn fabric Chloe could see angry red marks feathered across his pale skin, branching over his chest and arms, up the side of his neck to his face.

“What happened?” she whispered.

He glanced down at himself, as if he hadn’t realized the marks were there. He brushed at his torn shirt. “It’s nothing.”

“Nothing!” she cried, but before she could press him further a prickle at her back made her whirl around. A shadow moved behind the tinted glass door. Lucifer grabbed her arm and pulled her behind him.

The glass shattered. Chloe and Lucifer both flinched, arms coming up to protect their faces. “Detective!” A sing-song parody of Lucifer’s voice drifted out into the street. A shuffling step followed it, and the creature emerged. It was dragging one leg, smoke rising from its hair and clothes, and its  _ face— _

Chloe couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped her. Its features dripped and pooled, like it had fashioned its form out of plastic and when Chloe had set it on fire it had started to melt. It smiled, its mouth an irregular gash in its misshapen face. The teeth inside were sharp and yellow.

“Oh, well done, Detective,” Lucifer murmured. “Set it on fire, did you?” 

She grimaced. “Along with half of Lux.”

He chuckled. “I’d been looking for an excuse to redecorate.” She snorted. He raised his voice. “Thought you were in for easy prey, hm?” He eyed the creature up and down. “Now look at you.”

The creature scoffed. “Only this body is injured. My strength remains.” It shuffled closer. Lucifer backed away, keeping Chloe behind him. “And your attacks only make me stronger, Lightbringer.”

“Not this time.” Lucifer’s voice had gone low and gravelly. At his side, his hand opened and closed. Blue white light played down his arm, over his fingers. Chloe felt the static tugging at her hair despite the rain. “You see, I’ve been busy.” He raised his hand, the lightning brighter now, flashing over his whole body. Steam rose from his clothes and hair. “I’m properly armed, now.”

“Are you so sure about that?” The creature opened its mouth wide, and Chloe bit back a scream. Its jaw unhinged, opening into a black void, darker than dark, a black hole that pulled in all the light around them. The streetlights winked out. The only light that remained came from Lucifer.

Blue-white light crackled over his skin, forming ball of energy in his hands that shone like the sun. Like a star. He raised it over his head and hurled it at the creature. The light streamed out of him and into the black maw.

Lucifer let out a triumphant laugh. “Try to absorb  _ that _ , you cretin.” He laughed again.

And then he started to scream.

Chloe shut her eyes tight, hot tears streaming down her face. It seemed to go on forever, the light that stained her eyelids red, Lucifer’s cry of pain that sounded like it couldn’t possibly come from a human throat.  _ That’s because it doesn’t _ . She covered her ears and crouched on the wet pavement, the cold rain pouring over her shoulders.  _ He’s okay. Let him be okay. _

Finally it stopped. Chloe straightened slowly, blinking in the darkness. Above, the streetlights flickered and turned back on.

Lucifer stood, swaying, a few feet away, a pile of smoldering ash at his feet. His hair stuck out wildly from the electricity that had pulsed through him. It curled as the rain struck it. 

He turned to smile at her as she approached. A fresh batch of frostlike red welts spidered over his skin. “See?” he said, his voice thin and breathy. Up close, Chloe could see the lines of pain around his eyes, the tension in his smile. “Easy peasy.” 

She had just enough time to catch him under the arms when his knees buckled. She lowered him to the ground and knelt on the wet pavement. “Yeah,” she said faintly. “Easy peasy.”


	12. Worse for Wear by ElenaCee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

So, here they were, huddled in the rain, both of them soaked through, Lucifer showing evidence of… whatever it was he had done, precisely.

Chloe didn’t pretend to even begin to understand what she’d seen and heard, and - for goodness’ sake - even smelled with her own senses, but there would be time for processing all that later. There would hopefully also be time for explanations and a nice little freakout later.

This truly was a night when the boundaries between reality and the fantastical were weakened. Chloe certainly felt like her tidy world had become invaded by possibilities that were rapidly taking on form and substance.

She wanted to welcome them, but she’d need time for that.

The pile of smouldering ash had stopped smouldering and was slowly being washed away even as she looked. Still, she kept staring at it, fearing it would somehow reform and turn back into that terrifying not-Lucifer thing she was sure she’d be seeing in her dreams. That’s what the things nightmares were made of did, after all - pop up again just when everyone thought they were defeated.

_ Gremlins _ was one of Trixie’s favorite movies.

Meanwhile, she kept her arm around Lucifer, holding him close to her. As long as she could feel him, as long as she could be certain that he was her real Lucifer, and as long as she kept the ash in her sight, she would be safe.

“Detective…” Lucifer said weakly.

She kept staring. Dimly, she realized she was shivering, even though it wasn’t that cold. Was it? The rain that trickled down her face felt warm, like tears.

“Detective?”

With a start, she realized she couldn’t see the ash anymore. It had become indistinguishable from the pavement. Or maybe it was already reforming somewhere else? At least the streetlights were still on….

“Chloe.”

His use of her first name rebooted her brain. She looked at the man -  _ Devil? Lightbringer? _ \- in her arms. “Sorry. Yeah. Present.”

He gave her a smile.

Him. He was lying in her arms, hurt, exhausted, and  _ he  _ was reassuring  _ her. Get it together, Decker,  _ she told herself. “Is it over?” she asked, hoping she didn’t sound as scared as she felt. She was just making sure the situation was contained. Standard procedure, that’s all.

“Yes,” he said, voice rough, “it’s over. This bit of pre-creation darkness is gone, vanquished by light, never to return.”

Her relief was blinding. “Thank God,” she said, heartfelt but without thinking.

He grimaced. “Can you not, please? And lovely as this is, do you think we could maybe get out of this rain?” His familiar grin made a tentative appearance. “We can always resume these positions somewhere more comfortable, if you’d like.”

She snorted, relieved. It he could make cracks like that, he probably wasn’t actively dying.

Then again, who knew with him? Considering what she’d just witnessed, could she ever be sure about him again? How could she continue to treat him the way she always had? He was -

_ Still the man who stole Trixie’s sandwich, _ she told herself. Keep that thought. No matter what you just saw happening, no matter what will happen next, just keep that thought.

“Right,” she said, “let’s get you back into  _ Lux, _ then.” She tried to ignore any possible scenarios involving smoke detectors and automatic fire suppression systems. They’d cross that bridge when they came to it.

Meanwhile, Lucifer attempted to lever himself to his feet, but fell back with a groan. “Bloody Hell. Sorry. I’m seriously out of shape. Don’t remember creating light being this strenuous back when I was doing it regularly.” He raised one hand to look at the red spider web patterns criss-crossing his skin curiously. “This is new, too.” His voice was beginning to sound detached, and Chloe recognized a symptom of shock.

That was something she could deal with; was, in fact, trained to deal with. “Don’t worry about any of that now.”  _ Get him out of the rain. Get him somewhere horizontal. Watch out for signs of impending unconsciousness.  _ “Let’s try that again, yeah?”

She got up to help him scramble onto his knees, then draped his arm across her shoulders to pull him upright. This time, he made it, his whole body trembling, his breath fast and shallow with the strain.

They stood, clinging to each other, swaying like a couple of drunks as Lucifer listed to one side and Chloe tried to keep him from toppling over. Walking would be a challenge. The entrance to  _ Lux _ seemed miles away. And the rain continued unabated.


	13. Still Here for You by Mia_Vaan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READERS -- please note that the sole author who wrote the chapter is listed in the title. Please ignore the "Antarctic Echoes" under "Chapter by." Many apologies for the confusion.

 

 

The sprinkler system had done its job, extinguishing the fire but leaving a mess in its wake. Chloe sighed at the destruction. It wasn’t awful, she’d definitely seen worse during her time as a cop (Lucifer had even rescued her from a burning building once before), but it was still damaged.  _ Lux _ would be closed for a week at least.

As if sensing her worry, Lucifer chuckled softly. It sounded like it hurt him. “Like I said, Detective. Redecoration excuse. I’ll take care of it…once I walk this off…”

“You’re not walking anywhere anytime soon.” She helped him over to the elevator and pressed the button, calling it. Luckily it was still working despite the fire. “So, I don’t want you coming into work tomorrow.”

“Thought you had the day off?”

She blinked, remembering that Lucifer was right. She did. And even if she hadn’t, she doubted she would’ve gone in anyway. After what they’d just survived, she wouldn’t have felt guilty about calling in sick. Marcus wouldn’t have questioned her, what with her being his  _ favourite _ detective, and all.

The rush she had felt before at this thought – when the lieutenant was lying in the hospital bed after saving her life, and looking at her like she was his new North Star – was notably absent. Perhaps it was the adrenaline which hadn’t quite worn off yet. Or maybe it had nothing to do with what she’d just been through, and everything to do with the man in her arms who had also risked his life to save her.

Who had quite possibly nearly destroyed himself just to protect her from an actual, real life monster.

And really, nothing could compete in the face of selflessness like that, even if Lucifer really was the Devil.

They stumbled into the elevator when the doors opened, and Chloe pushed the button for the penthouse. The doors closed, and they began to climb upwards.

Lucifer attempted to pull away from her and rest against the wall, but Chloe held firm and kept him by her side. “You’re not escaping me that easily, mister.”

He let out a weak noise of pain, which was probably meant to be another chuckle. Chloe wondered if the pain was from almost dying, or was because of something else.

It sounded almost fearful.

Only when they arrived in his penthouse and Chloe managed to get him all the way into his bedroom, did she start to suspect what he was actually thinking. He was looking away from her, trying not to make eye contact, and when she saw his eyes for a second she realized that there was fear in them.

He sounded afraid. He looked afraid.

Of what?

“Just pour me a glass of whisky, Detective, and then I’ll be fine. You’ll be free to go.”

Chloe took a step back and stared at him as realization dawned on her.

Now, while part of her was kicking herself for not figuring out sooner that  _ her partner was really the Devil _ (because honestly, the more she thought about it the more she realized that it had been  _ glaringly obvious _ ), she was still a detective. And her instincts were still working despite the embarrassing hiccup.

The way he’d avoided answering her question back in her apartment, whenever she’d asked what he’d done. The fact that he could realistically prove all along who he was, but didn’t. The real fear in his eyes and laced in his voice, as if he assumed she’d just leave him there alone when he was in pain and never come back…

She sighed. The small part of her that was mad at him for not telling her sooner, for not trusting her, shrank back down. Because she knew him, and she knew that for all his show of confidence and not caring, he was just a frightened and lonely soul who only wanted someone to connect with. Of course he would be terrified of showing her, if there was even the slightest chance of scaring her away.

And early on in their friendship, when she didn’t know him that well and he was more of an annoyance than a friend, maybe she would’ve been scared away.

But not now. Not when they’d come so far. Not when he’d nearly killed himself saving her life.

Again.

“You’re an idiot.”

He finally turned to face her. “Beg your pardon?”

“Do you seriously think I’m just gonna up and leave you after you nearly get your stupid ass killed saving my life? Like  _ Hell _ I’m gonna leave.” She folded her arms across her chest, her ‘Mom’ look cranked up to full power.

The confusion painted across his face was…well, pretty adorable, if she was being honest. “Detective,  _ surely _ you’ve figured out who I am by now.”

“You’re the Devil,” she said. “But you’re also my partner. The goof-ball who steals Trixie’s sandwich because he’s hungry, who plays Sex Words With Friends…who’s nearly gotten himself killed  _ twice _ now in order to save me. Tonight, and then with Malcolm…”

“Three times,” he said casually. “Had to go back to Hell to get that antidote when you were poisoned. Of course, technically I  _ did _ die, but I got better, and it was the same when Malcolm shot me…”

The sudden lump in her throat prevented Chloe from speaking. There he was, saying that he’d died  _ twice _ to save her life, saying it like it meant nothing to him, like his life didn’t matter in comparison to hers…

She threw caution to the wind. Before she let herself think about what she was doing, she leaned down and planted a kiss on his lips. It got him to shut up, and she decided that she needed to do that more often on cases. The very thought excited her.

When she leaned back, Lucifer was staring at her with wide eyes. “Detective…”

“Look, I know you stopped this thing before it went too far, but…” Why did she suddenly feel like she was sixteen again? “…but I’m starting to think you did that because of something to do with this whole Devil business, right?”

He looked down. “It’s…more complicated than that.”

“Then you can tell me. And we can work through it, like we always do.”

The Devil before he still looked unsure. “What about Pierce? I thought the two of you…”

She shrugged. “I don’t think it would’ve gone anywhere serious.” Because at the end of the day, Pierce had just been a distraction. Someone to focus on in order to keep her thoughts away from the person she  _ really _ wanted…

There was still no hope in his eyes. She wanted to change that. “You may think differently when I tell you everything.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.” She leaned forwards and kissed him again.

This time, when she pulled away, Lucifer was actually smiling…

Without warning, a pair of white, gigantic wings sprung out of his back.

“Oh, bloody hell! Again?!”

Despite her shock and amazement at the appearance of  _ actual wings _ , her partner’s annoyance sent Chloe into fits of laughter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this concludes the Round Robin from Hell-oween! We hope that you enjoyed our little collaborative fic. On behalf of all the writers, thank you very much for reading. You are all awesome!


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